Editing Benjamin Rush
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|caption = | |caption = | ||
|birth_date = January 4, 1746 | |birth_date = January 4, 1746 | ||
− | |birth_place = Byberry, PA | + | |birth_place = Byberry, PA |
|death_date = April 19, 1813 | |death_date = April 19, 1813 | ||
− | |death_place = Philadelphia, PA | + | |death_place = Philadelphia, PA |
|other_names = | |other_names = | ||
|known_for = Father of American Psychiatry | |known_for = Father of American Psychiatry | ||
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|nationality = American | |nationality = American | ||
}} | }} | ||
− | '''Benjamin Rush''' (January 4, 1746 [O.S. December 24, 1745] – April 19, 1813) was a Founding Father of the United States, and signer of the U.S. Constitution. Rush lived in the state of Pennsylvania and was a physician, writer, educator, humanitarian, as well as the founder of Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. He served as Surgeon General in the Continental army, and was blamed for criticizing the policies of George Washington. Later in life, Rush became a professor of chemistry, medical theory, and clinical practice at the University of Pennsylvania. Despite having a wide influence on the development of American government, he is not as widely known as many of his American contemporaries. Rush was also an early opponent of slavery and capital punishment | + | '''Benjamin Rush''' (January 4, 1746 [O.S. December 24, 1745] – April 19, 1813) was a Founding Father of the United States, and signer of the U.S. Constitution. Rush lived in the state of Pennsylvania and was a physician, writer, educator, humanitarian, as well as the founder of Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. He served as Surgeon General in the Continental army, and was blamed for criticizing the policies of George Washington. Later in life, Rush became a professor of chemistry, medical theory, and clinical practice at the University of Pennsylvania. Despite having a wide influence on the development of American government, he is not as widely known as many of his American contemporaries. Rush was also an early opponent of slavery and capital punishment. |
− | + | Rush remained on the hospital staff at [[Pennsylvania Hospital]] from 1783 until 1813. In 1812, Dr. Rush published the first textbook on the subject in the United States, 'Medical Inquiries and Observations upon the Diseases of the Mind'. He undertook to classify different forms of mental illness to theorize as to their causes and possible cures. Like many physicians at the time, Rush believed that many mental illnesses were caused by disruptions of the blood circulation, and treated them with devices meant to improve circulation to the brain, such as a restraining chair and a centrifugal spinning board. While Dr. Rush was uncertain what to do clinical for the mentally ill, he knew that chains and dungeons were not the answer. He took patients from that drudgery and placed them in a regular medical hospital setting. For this reason his approach is officially referred to as the 'Moral Therapy'. In honor of his service to the field of mental health care, the [[American Psychiatric Association]] uses Dr. Rush's image as part of their seal,as he is often regarding as the father of American Psychiatry, along side that of Dr. [[Thomas Story Kirkbride]]. | |
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== Writings == | == Writings == |